In Britain, she is referred to formally as "Her Majesty the Queen", but is generally called simply "the Queen". Her full title, by virtue of the Royal Titles Act of 1953, is: "Elizabeth the Second, by the Grace of God of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and of Her other Realms and Territories Queen, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith".

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Early life

She was the first child of the Duke and Duchess of York, who later became King George VI and Queen Consort Elizabeth. At birth she stood third in line of succession to the throne after Edward, Prince of Wales (later King Edward VIII), and her father. It was not expected that her father would become king, or that she would become queen.

Princess Elizabeth's quiet family life came to an end in 1936, when her grandfather, King George V, died. His eldest son came to the throne as King Edward VIII, but, before the end of the year, the new king decided to give up the throne in order to marry a divorced American woman, Mrs Wallis Simpson.

Upon Edward's abdication, Princess Elizabeth's father acceded to the throne, and in 1937 Princess Elizabeth attended her parents' coronation in Westminster Abbey. This put her first in line to the throne.

The princess received home tuition at Sandringham and Buckingham Palace during the 1930s, where her tutors included her father and Henry Marten, the Vice-Provost of Eton. She was also instructed in religion by the Archbishop of Canterbury. Now that she had became first in line to throne, Elizabeth started to study constitutional history and law as preparation for her future role as queen. Elizabeth also learned French from various French and Belgian governesses; this skill standing the queen in good stead, as she often has cause to use it when speaking to ambassadors and heads of state from French-speaking countries and when visiting French-speaking areas of Canada.

In 1940, at the height of the Blitz, the young princess was moved to the safety of Windsor Castle, where she spent most of the war years, although in 1945 she joined the Women's Auxiliary Territorial Service and trained as a driver, operating military trucks.

Role within the Church of England

Since Queen Elizabeth has taken the throne she has taken the role of "Defender of the Faith and Supreme Governor of the Church of England". Archbishops and bishops are appointed by the Queen on the advice of the Prime Minister, who considers the names selected by a Church Commission.[1] They take an oath of allegiance to The Queen on appointment and may not resign without Royal authority.

In parliament the Queen's position in the Church of England is represented by a selection of Priests, known as the Lords Spiritual, taking positions in the House of Lords. In recent times, however, it has been discussed in the House of Commons that the Lords Spiritual have their positions removed.

The Commonwealth Realms

Australian 50c coins showing two different likenesses of Queen Elizabeth II